LAFD Offers Memorial Day Weekend Safety Tips

The 2012 version of Memorial Day is upon us. For many, it represents the first days of Summer. With that, comes: first exposure (or maybe just over-exposure) to the sun, first cook-outs or BBQs on the grill (or over-exposure to the grill..yes, too much to eat) and the first time back into the refreshing waters of the ocean or pool.  

You may spend the Holiday Weekend at home with your family or a small group. You may opt to travel by air, road or rail and spend it with the masses or perhaps with a huge group that just happens to resemble your family. However you choose to spend it, please take a look at a few safety tips that may ensure a long and very pleasant Memorial Day Weekend... despite those distant relatives that all decided to visit from the East Coast. (Of course we're kidding!) 

These Memorial Day Weekend Safety Tips are provided with help from our friends at the County of Los Angeles Public Health and a few of our own, we thought were worth mentioning:

• Cook, grill or BBQ intelligently. Use clean plates, store food properly and prepare it correctly.
• Avoid prolonged sun exposure and sun damage. Wear sunscreen. Apply it generously and often.
• Be aware of changing weather conditions. Find or tune into a news source.
• Be aware of changing traffic conditions, road closures and other delays.
• Pool safely and always have someone watching the water.
• If you take to the mountains for some hiking or biking, don't go alone. Hike/bike during daylight hours. Hydrate and pack a snack. Don't underestimate the terrain. And if you have one, take a mobile phone with you and make sure it's charged.
• If you choose to imbibe, don't drink and drive! We all know the sobering statistics. Appoint a designated driver, use a designated driver service (there are many) or call a cab.

Enjoy the weekend. Enjoy family and friends. Enjoy foods and libations (in moderation.) And enjoy the freedom and liberty that was made possible by those the men and women who served and do serve in the United States Armed Forces. Please take pause, if only for a moment, and give thanks to those who have had the courage to enlist, shown the strength and commitment to serve and to those who gave it all. This weekend especially, we remember!

The LAFD will provide more on Memorial Day remembrance, tomorrow, in another post. Until then, may God Bless the United States of America.

 

Submitted by, Matt Spence Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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LAFD Attends Extreme Aircrew Training at 'Graveyard of the Pacific'

During January 2012, the Los Angeles Fire Department was invited to participate in a first of its kind joint-agency training at the U.S. Coast Guard's Advanced Helicopter Rescue School. It was an extreme honor for LAFD personnel to learn from the world's finest...

Extreme Aircrew Training at 'Graveyard of the Pacific'
Written by:
Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathan Littlejohn
13th Coast Guard District public affairs.

Hail pelts the side of students’ faces as they prepare to plunge into the frigid surf. Their teachers put on fins while lifeguards float on jet skis just beyond the 12-foot breaking waves, crashing on the beach before them. This is no ordinary classroom, and these are no ordinary students.

The Coast Guard’s Advanced Helicopter Rescue School, held in Astoria, Ore., and the area surrounding the Columbia River entrance, typically does what its name implies. It’s a Coast Guard school that teaches Coast Guard helicopter crews advanced rescue techniques required for successful mission execution in extreme conditions.

One recent class of trainees took their extreme training as an opportunity to partner with other rescue professionals. The class convening at the end of January included air operations members of both the Los Angeles City and Santa Barbara County, Calif., fire departments as well as pararescuemen with the Royal Canadian Air Force 442nd Squadron out of Comox, B.C. The mix of students marked the first joint-agency class of its kind, strengthening partnerships and sharing knowledge with civilian and military rescue agencies with similar search and rescue missions. (read on, see additional video...)

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We wish to thank Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr. and members of the 13th Coast Guard District for allowing members of your Los Angeles Fire Department to participate in this valuable training.


Submitted by Brian Humphrey, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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NOAA Declares Los Angeles StormReady and TsunamiReady

The City of Los Angeles was recently recognized by NOAA’s National Weather Service as StormReady® and the largest city in the nation to become TsunamiReady™.



The nationwide voluntary community preparedness programs use a grassroots approach to help communities develop plans to prepare and warn citizens about severe weather, flooding and tsunami threats. To become StormReady and TsunamiReady, the City of Los Angeles met stringent criteria focusing on both internal and external communication, alert systems, reception and understanding of hazardous weather alerts, community outreach, and a comprehensive natural disaster plan.

Mark Jackson, meteorologist-in-charge of the National Weather Service forecast office in Oxnard, presented city officials with recognition letters and StormReady and TsunamiReady signs at a ceremony on January 27, 2012 during a Los Angeles City Council meeting.

"As a city that faces the potential wrath of Mother Nature on a number of fronts, Los Angeles is proud to have earned the National Weather Service's distinctive 'TsunamiReady' and 'StormReady' recognition," said Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. "Our city is committed to the highest level of emergency preparedness so that our residents can be best equipped to deal with any sort of disaster."

"Like all areas along the West Coast, a tsunami could strike Los Angeles," said Jackson, who encouraged residents to develop their own emergency response plan, keep a disaster supply kit on hand and learn the tsunami warning signs.

The StormReady and TsunamiReady programs are a part of NOAA National Weather Service's working partnership with the International Association of Emergency Managers, the National Emergency Management Association and the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program. The StormReady and TsunamiReady designation must be renewed after three years.

For more information on how your family can be prepared for a severe storm or tsunami, visit:

stormready.noaa.gov

tsunamiready.noaa.gov

Submitted by Brian Humphrey, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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Google Earth 5.0

Da quando è stato lanciato, Google Earth ci ha permesso di esplorare la Terra in ogni suo angolo. Abbiamo potuto ammirare le opere d'arte realizzate dalla natura ma anche vedere i terribili cambiamenti prodotti sul nostro pianeta da fenomeni naturali o dalla stessa mano dell'uomo. Nel tempo questo viaggio si è esteso all'immensità del cielo, attraverso immagini ad altissima risoluzione, che hanno documentato per noi 100 milioni di stelle e 200 milioni di galassie.

Google Earth però è ancora un prodotto ben lontano dall'aver raggiunto la sua maturità. Per questo continuiamo a raccogliere i vostri commenti, i suggerimenti e le opinioni essenziali per farlo crescere e migliorare.

Spettacolari progetti come Roma Antica in 3D e i capolavori del museo del Prado su Google Earth sono esempi concreti, frutto di vostre richieste per approfondimenti di tipo storico e culturale, ma anche dell'impegno di importanti partner che hanno deciso di mettere i loro contenuti e le loro informazioni a vostra disposizione, su Google Earth.

Oggi, l'evoluzione di Google Earth è segnata da una nuova e importante tappa: il lancio della versione 5.0 e delle inedite funzionalità: Ocean, Immagini Storiche, Tour e Marte in 3D.

Di seguito il video con i dettagli sul progetto. Per maggiori informazioni, visitate il link: http://earth.google.it/ocean

Scritto da: Giorgia Longoni, Direttore Marketing
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